Danger Ahead
by Vampykitty-kun
Summary: "Damian… we need to talk." he winced at his own words, ever aware of the implication of them. - Fear gas, Love Confessions, and Dick trying to be a responsible adult. Damian is 16, one underage kiss sprung on Dick. Implied one-sided Jason/Bruce.


He knew he probably should have seen the signs. Learned from the past even though he so often tried to deny what had gone on. But honestly, he had been blinded by duty, by sentimentality, by morals, and truly had not seen it coming.

When Damian had confessed his deepest secret oh so many nights ago after an encounter with the scarecrow gone so very wrong he had been terrified. _Shocked_. Unsure of what to do.

Damian was all of sixteen and claimed to _love_ him in a not so brotherly fashion.

Whether or not Damian remembered his late night confession amidst a mental break down was a question all in itself. If so he was choosing to pretend as though nothing had happened, or honestly thought he had dreamt it in his fear filled stupor. Dick dared not bring it up because it would make things all the more real for himself. As is he had already had sleepless nights resulting from the chaos.

He had gone to Jason, _admittedly_ a plan not so thought through, but as horrible of an idea as it had sounded Jason was in fact the only one he could go to for advice in such a situation. Not even Babs could save him here. Unfortunately, no sooner had the words left his mouth had Jason burst into ironic laughter, and the man had sat him down with an uncharacteristically neutral expression, and had let him have it.

"Cut him off right here and _now_ , or slam straight into this without stopping, because there can be no mid-ground. And by cut things off, I mean _everything_ \- no more running the rooftops as Batman and Robin, no more penthouse roomies, because even if he doesn't show it, he'll be pining, and his performance _will_ suffer. He'll be frustrated, hurt, and might even shut down all together because he's not like normal kids, not even like me. He _will_ screw up, and someone is going to get hurt, or worse, _die_. I would know. You'll either have to force him to step down as Robin, or give B back the cowl full time and make the kid his problem. So choose wisely. To be honest, you probably know where you stand already and pretty much only decided to consult me to make yourself feel better, either which way you go."

And really, there was no denying that that had been the truth, and he had let Jason speak his mind. Afterwards they had merely sat in silence until eventually Jason had moved to step away.

"Was it... had it been _worth_ it? Even with how things had turned out? Were you _happy_? Did you regret it?" Though it was a very personal question he had really needed to ask.

And truth be told, when Jason still turned away and pulled the helmet back up over his head, he did not think the man was going to answer. But at the last second, before Jason rounded the corner, he had turned back to him for brief second.

"Could _never_ regret it. Best days of my life." And with that, he had been gone.

Then Dick had quite a lot to think about, even more so than before, and it had been nerve wracking. For the first time he did the very same thing he had once criticized Bruce for. He sat in front of a bat-computer countless hours doing nothing but staring at the screen, drinking coffee, and brooding, wondering how life had gotten so complicated.

It had taken him an entire week to get his head in order, and even than he likely would have sat on it a few more days, if of course Alfred had not been hounding him to get back on his feet and out of whatever rut he was in, as he was being uncharacteristically careless during his patrols and coming home with more damage than usual.

He waited until Alfred had gone back to the manor for the night before addressing the situation. While he was very sure that Alfred had a mind more open than most, he was not quite ready to face the music with him, not when he wasn't sure what the future really held.

Damian feigned sleep when he cracked the bedroom door open and glanced inside, but he knew better after all this time, and stepped into the room all the same.

He would have been lying if he had said that he was calm, when in reality his pulse was racing, and his nerves were shot. He sat at the end of the bed silently, waiting to be acknowledged, and after five minutes had ticked by he let out a ragged sigh. Only then did the teen stir and crack his eyes to stare at him in the dimly lit room.

" _Grayson_." A statement, rather than a question, and Dick looked oh so very tired when he met his gaze.

"Damian… we need to talk." he winced at his own words, ever aware of the implication of them, in the average world, and he gave another sigh.

Damian frowned and righted himself in the sheets to sit at attention.

"What about?"

He stared at the teen for a long moment, going over what he wanted to say for what could easily be the three hundredth time, before cracking a small sad smile.

"About _us_. About feelings, and what yours toward me, and mine toward you are."

He watched the teenn become rigid and resisted the urge to reach for him when Damian's face twitched.

Inevitably Damian sucked in a sharp breath.

"I-I see then… I spoke aloud. Not _all_ was merely an illusion."

"I'm afraid not."

"Very well." And as though a switch had been flipped, Damian composed himself. "I find myself with non-platonic feelings toward you. I cannot pinpoint exactly when they began, just that it did in fact occur, and despite my efforts to withhold that information, poor mental state at that time allowed things to slip past my defenses and out my mouth. With that said, I feel… _safe_ with you around. You hold my trust more than any other. I would- _I would die_ to keep you safe, and whether or not you find it appropriate, great _harm_ would come to anyone who dare try and take you from this world, and you should know that."

Dick groaned and ran a hand through his hair.

"Why tell me now? Why not say something _sooner_? I mean… I never would have guessed. This has caught me way off guard."

Damian snorted and shook his head.

"Because I am _not_ daft. Regardless of whether I disagree or not, there is a barrier of morals, and I am not foolish enough to think that yours would cease solely with my influence. You would have turned me away. Our arrangements would have changed. I was willing to put my feelings aside to keep things as they were. I am… _content_ with life as current…" he muttered.

And because he truly needed to know…

"How long? That you have been aware of?"

"What does it matter?"

"It matters a _lot_ actually."

It really did.

"I- _four_? Perhaps five years?" Damian murmured, averting his gaze.

And that was when it truly hit Dick. That Damian was utmost serious. That this had been going on the majority of their partnership, that it had _never_ distracted him, and he could not even pinpoint while looking back any outright change in their dynamics.

Dick watched as Damian's shoulders began to sag with the realization that things _would_ in fact change after this. It would, he knew that much, but the things he had planned to say going into the conversation were now lost in the wind. He often forgot how abnormally mature Damian could be with some things, and utterly childish with others. It made things more difficult to say the least, and if he had gone on so long without it having become a problem- well, then _would_ it?

He drew in a deep breath and released it sharply, making Damian jump the slightest bit, and he met the teen's gaze himself.

"Okay. So this is what's going to happen from here-"

"Do I not get a say in the matter?" Damian snapped, fisting the sheets in agitation, and Dick could really sympathize with him.

"Some, but mostly _no_. I have to be the responsible one here Damian. You are _sixteen_." He paused, holding a hand up to stop the outburst before it could occur. "And while you're plenty mature, it doesn't change the fact that you are a minor, and a stubborn one at that. Your feelings have never gotten in the way of our work in the past. We've been an incredible team, and I'm not about to break that up, even if it's the most logical choice."

"You're _not_?"

"No, I'm not. But I'm afraid that I am going to have to insist that you set up shop back at the manor. I can pick you up for patrol and drop you off at home after. I can still hang out during the day at the house or down in the cave. I'm not at all upset with your confession- nor am I actually saying _no_. I'm flattered really, I know how much it takes to win you over, I'm just more shocked than anything for now so you've got to give me time…" he gave an awkward laugh. "I mean… at this point you probably know me best, and out of everyone you've been the best company over the years. So maybe in a few more we can sit back and have this conversation again and see where we stand then? I mean… now I _know_ , and I won't be sitting here oblivious thinking I'm just your number one bro, right?"

Damian swallowed and gave a single curt nod.

"I… _suppose_." He murmured, and Dick could see he was rather lost in thought. "Why must I return home to father? He is not as attune to my wants and needs. We do little but argue about the simplest things."

At this he had to chuckle.

"Be that as it may it's only proper. Not only will it seem all sorts of wrong in the public eye if in the future there's something between us and you've been living with me since ten right on up until the fact, but quite frankly, with how stubborn you are, and as affectionate as I can be, I hardly trust things to not get awkward, ya know?"

Damian rolled his eyes.

"I suppose I can agree that you can be smothering and you have a track record for falling into relationships with your housemates."

"I- _well_ … that's not what I meant..." Despite himself Dick could feel the heat on his face. "but, can you live with this? Or do we have to re-evaluate how we do things?"

Damian sighed.

"I can agree to your terms Grayson. After one thing."

And before Dick could even ask what that one thing was, Damian had lunged forward, grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, and pulled him in for one hell of a kiss.

When Damian finally pulled away, and he was left gaping in shock, the teen sighed, nodded to himself, and returned to the head of the bed.

"That ought to hold me over until you come around."


End file.
